This blog is a place where I write about my musings, my interests, my writing journey, my love of books, movies, and all things creative. So stick around, I’m sure there’ll be something you could get into!

Saturday, April 30, 2011

I find that movies don't tend to stay in the theatre too long these days so I had to go see The Lincoln Lawyer this afternoon before it disappeared. Anyway, Matthew McConaughey played the unconventional defense lawyer, Mick Haller, who works out of his Lincoln. His clients are very interesting and if they don't pay, he doesn't play. So when a wealthy Realtor, Louis Roulet, played by Ryan Phillippe is accused of raping a prostitute, Haller is asked to defend him. This case becomes even more complicated when Haller and his investigator, Frank Levin, played by William H. Macy finds evidence that Roulet may be linked to one of Haller's old case.

Overall, it was a well casted ensemble including ex-wife, Maggie McPherson, played by Maria Tomei (it was good to see her), John Leguizamo, Michael Peña, Shea Whigham (as the snitch was too funny), and others. Good story with a few twists and turns - I loved it!

It's been a very busy week for me. On Wednesday, I left my yoga class early so that I could tune into a teleseminar by Steve Harrison to learn more about making more as an author/expert in any economy. He gave listeners some great tips including how to expand our income pool by hosting seminars, webinars, workshops and being a coach. In addition, he mentioned how important it is to revisit our marketing strategy to make sure that we're getting the most from it. Overall, it was very enlightening and I'll definitely be using some of these marketing tools to get the word out about my novel, Gotta Let It Go.

Then on Thursday, I had an interview with Patrick Tandy, Publications Manager, Bar Bulletin (Maryland State Bar Association). The interview was scheduled for only 30 minutes but we ended up talking about books, marketing, publications, all things Baltimore and then some for about 2 hours. I enjoyed the interview and I look forward to seeing the print interview in the Bar Bulletin in mid-May.

Saturday, April 23, 2011

So finally I get to spend a Saturday at home, no meetings, no mentoring, no hanging out, just simply getting my writing swag on. It feels really good because it's been a while since I had interrupted time - it's a beautiful thing!

Later, I'll get to relax and catch up on some of the TV shows which I keep missing week after week because I've been constantly busy. Oh, this week my shoes (Guess, 4 inch heels) were featured on a blog by B. Swangin Webster, a fellow author. Check it out at www.booksshoeswriting.blogspot.com

Saturday, April 16, 2011

My bff and I have been so busy for the past couple of months that we haven't had a chance to relax and have some fun. So we picked out this Saturday to go shoppiing at Annapolis Mall and then rest up and head out to our favorite hangout, Half Note Lounge later that night.

Well, we started out early in rainy weather and arrived at the mall at 9:30 am only to find the garage was pretty filled up. When we got inside there was an Easter egg hunt in progress and kids were all over the place. We grabbed breakfast at Chick-fil-A to get our energy going before hitting the stores. We started at Macy's and picked up the cutest shoes before going to Express, Victoria's Secret and some other stores to get some tops and other accessories. We almost shopped till we dropped! Then we headed home to rest up for a fun night.

Later, we arrived at Half Note Lounge a little after 8 pm and the parking lot was surprising empty for a Saturday night. We looked at each other and thought "wow, folks are staying home tonight because of the rain." No problem, we walked in and then settled into two seats at the bar and ordered two pink lemonades (these really creep up on you) before starting up conversations with other folks at the bar. The musical artist, Sharon Thomas, saxophonist and her band performed and we had a great time out on the dance floor, so much so that we left when the club closed. Now that's what I call having a good time - Can't wait until the next adventure!!

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Tonight was the last in the teleseries "Write Your Book in 30 Days." Host, Joy Farrington, president of Lit Diva, Inc. gave listeners great tips on how to prepare your author press kit including how to get reviews for your book and draw attention to you as the author. As the call went on, listeners were joined by Financial Expert, Ryan Mack who gave great insights on how to use the media to help build your author platform. One of the best advice that he gave the listeners was that "giving back was a prospect of benevolence." This is so true as the good work that you do come back ten fold to thank you.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

This afternoon, I attended the Crowns Performance at the Murphy Fine Arts Center - Gilliam Concert Hall at Morgan State University with the mentoring program. The play runs from April 8th - 10th and appeals to a very wide audience. Crowns by Regina Taylor is adapted from the photo anthology book by Michael Cunningham and Craig Marberry. In 1998, North Carolina photographer Michael Cunningham began taking pictures of women in their hats. His friend, journalist Craig Marberry, thought they should put together a book of the photos and the stories behind them as he was curious why so many African-American women wear flamboyant hats to church.

Crowns, a church musical tells the story of six African-American women through the hats they wear to church. Taylor who adapted the story onto the stage tells the stories of these women over the course of a Sunday. We, the audience get to see the women getting ready for church, attend a morning service, a wedding, a funeral and a baptism. Five of the older women are joined by a visitor — a younger woman from Brooklyn who was sent down to the South to stay with her grandmother after her brother was killed. While there, she watches her grandmother interact with her church friends as they engage in the ritual of preparing for and going to church. The young woman also begins to get a better understanding of the African tradition of covering one's head and she experiences a spiritual journey along the way.

The performances by the actors and singers including the Singing Sensations Youth Choir were superb. While I enjoyed the stories the women were telling, I couldn't take my eyes off the church hats that they would constantly change into throughout the play. These hats were in different shapes, colors and sizes. Some were very elegant, brightly colored with sequins, very flamboyant with wide brims adorned by feathers, and others were less flashy and perfectly matched the outfits the actors were wearing.

I'm a lover of hats, but I can't say that I own such flamboyant ones...maybe one day! Anyway, please enjoy some of the hats I photographed on my way out of the play.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Tonight is the second to last of a 5 part series of the "Write Your Book in 30 Days" Teleconference hosted co-hosted by Andrew Morrison, president of Small Business Camp and founder of the ‘Write Your Book in 30 Days’ program and co-facilitator, Joy Farrington, president of Lit Diva, Inc. During the past few weeks, the teleseries had top-named experts such as: E. Claudette Freeman, Clyde Vanel, Esq., and Barry Beckham. The topics for each call ranged from self-publishing and selecting the right printer for the job, protecting the intellectual property of your work and how to write a book proposal that lands you a publisher.

Tonight's guest speaker, Bro. Bedford gave the listeners some great tips on the power of e-books. At the end of the teleconference, he gave the listeners an offer we could not refuse, one of his presentation ($97 value) for just $10. So at 11:15 pm when I should be trying to get some sleep, I was reaching for my credit card to buy my copy of his e-book. I've been enjoying the teleseries and look forward to next week's guest speaker, Ryan Mack, who will be talking about using the media to build your author platform.

For more information about the "Write Your Book in 30 Days" teleseries, please visit www.litdiva.com

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Today, I attended the 2011 Maryland Writers Conference at the University of Baltimore's Thumel Business Center with two members from my writers' critique group. We arrived very early and grabbed some coffee before registration started at 8 am. Within 30 minutes, the entire venue was beginning to fill up. We were eager and ready to be engaged by the speakers of the day and to network with fellow writers.

The Conference touted a very good line up of seminars but I had my eye on two specific ones: 1)"The Business of Self-Publishing: Developing a Business Plan for Your Book," with guest speaker, K.L. Brady, author of Bum Magnet. It was nice to catch with Karla whom I met last year when she came and did a presentation on self-publishing at the Howard County Chapter of the Maryland Writers' Association. I walked away with great tips that I'll start using right away.; and 2)"What Does it Take to Make a Living as a Best Selling Author," with guest speaker, L.A. Banks, author of several best-selling novels. Ms. Banks gave us the "real" breakdown of the business of writing including the fact that writers need to assess their financial situation before making the leap to being a writer full time. She also stated that as writers, we should polish our craft, write everyday, and make our work the best we can before releasing it to the world.

Overall, the Conference was very informative and I look forward to next year's line up of speakers. In the meantime, I'll continue to network with fellow writers and others whom I met at the Conference.